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Enforce Section 11 Of The Cannabis Control Act: Regarding Patient's Rights |
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CHICAGO, IL - Illinois patients who must use cannabis as medicine are legally protected by Section 11 of the Cannabis Control Act. Under this section of the code, the Illinois Department of Health and Human Services, with written approval by the Illinois State Police, may authorize the use of cannabis for the "treatment of glaucoma, the side effects of chemotherapy or radiation therapy in cancer patients or such other procedure certified to be medically necessary".
Instead, these patients are harassed, intimidated, arrested, and prosecuted for doing what was intended to be legal therapy. One patient, Brenda Kratovil, is currently being prosecuted by the Lake County State's Attorney for the cultivation of cannabis. Mrs. Kratovil suffers from glaucoma and multiple sclerosis, and has been using medical marijuana for over 20 years. She is legally blind, on disability, married, and a mother of two children.
"Her case is not unlike other medical marijuana cases," said Bryan Brickner, chair of Illinois NORML. "Brenda has tried all the pharmaceuticals. She has had the same eye doctor since 1980. She has had eight cornea transplants for the glaucoma and surgery on her hands for the multiple sclerosis. She uses medical marijuana to relieve the pressure and pain. Her doctor knows she does, and he marvels that she can still see at all. Instead of prosecuting her as a criminal, why isn't the State helping her and enforcing the law as it is written?"
We're asking all organizations, media, and citizens to contact their legislators and ask them to enforce Section 11. Currently, the Department of Health and Human Services has no system in place to help the thousands of patients in Illinois who use medical marijuana. "I just want the state to enforce the law," said Mrs. Kratovil, "so that others don't have to go through what I'm going through."
Mrs. Kratovil will be at the press conference on June 6 at the Kluczynski Federal Building with other patients, doctors, and researchers discussing the legal issues involved with State's rights in legitimizing the legality of medical marijuana dispensaries. Visit www.safeaccessnow.org for information regarding actions in other cities.
Illinois Cannabis Control Act:
http://www.legis.state.il.us/ilcs/ch720/ch720act550.htm
The Illinois chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws
www.Illinoisnorml.org |
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Last Updated ( Friday, 26 May 2006 )
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